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jdmax98's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
riquesoares's review against another edition
4.0
4/5
This book was much more interesting than it should've been to me, based mostly on the sheer capacity of Joe Abercrombie to write a good story and keep his readers enthralled.
The story is focused on showing the horrors of war in all of it's many forms and does an amazing job at it, but it never goes too far to make the reading experience unpleasant. The message about war very evident since the start of the book: only very stupid, crazy or broken people enjoy war in any way shape or form.
The characters are very likeable and most of them have very good plot points that manage to leave people interested. But I do believe there were a bit too many characters in the story and a couple of them end up feeling unnecessary. The conclusions to their plots are nice enough, but it really doesn't feel very warranted to have them walking around most of the story. Craw, Gorst and Beck all felt like great representations of different aspects of the theme and I loved it.
The world is great, it made me realize how much I missed this world, even though I sadly didn't get to see much of it in this story, since 99% of it happens in the same place overall, in a couple of days. That was what I meant when I said I liked this book much more than I should, I tend to hate stories that stay stationary for too long and don't branch their locations out, but it did work very well for me.
And I do hope we get to see Bayaz dying in one of the following books in the series.
So yeah, overall not the strongest book in the series, but still a damn good story which explains it's message very clearly: Heroes are idiots or monsters.
This book was much more interesting than it should've been to me, based mostly on the sheer capacity of Joe Abercrombie to write a good story and keep his readers enthralled.
The story is focused on showing the horrors of war in all of it's many forms and does an amazing job at it, but it never goes too far to make the reading experience unpleasant. The message about war very evident since the start of the book: only very stupid, crazy or broken people enjoy war in any way shape or form.
The characters are very likeable and most of them have very good plot points that manage to leave people interested. But I do believe there were a bit too many characters in the story and a couple of them end up feeling unnecessary. The conclusions to their plots are nice enough, but it really doesn't feel very warranted to have them walking around most of the story. Craw, Gorst and Beck all felt like great representations of different aspects of the theme and I loved it.
The world is great, it made me realize how much I missed this world, even though I sadly didn't get to see much of it in this story, since 99% of it happens in the same place overall, in a couple of days. That was what I meant when I said I liked this book much more than I should, I tend to hate stories that stay stationary for too long and don't branch their locations out, but it did work very well for me.
Spoiler
The endings were pretty great and in-line with the theme. Craw, even though he hates battle and war, knows no other life and even comes back to it in the end. Gorst gets all he ever wanted with his promotion, but he doesn't feel satisfied he's a man that built himself on violence and hatred and doesn't have anything left in his life when not in a battle. Finree understands the weight and the horrors of war and grows as a person through it, finding a renewed respect for peace. Calder grows as a person and even reaches new heights, learning to value his brother and his wife over the mere presence of power, even though he is now subjected to Bayaz's power. Beck is my favorite: he simply goes back home to live his life without war, having learned the horror it holds and the value of human life beyond it. I loved to see Shivers again, he's one of my favorite characters in this series. Corporal Tunny... goes to not fight another war, I guess. I understand the logic of his character, but he was the main one I meant when I said some characters felt unnecessary to the story.And I do hope we get to see Bayaz dying in one of the following books in the series.
So yeah, overall not the strongest book in the series, but still a damn good story which explains it's message very clearly: Heroes are idiots or monsters.
millejax's review against another edition
4.0
A lot of people have this as their best of the First Law standalones. It's lowest for me. That does NOT mean it's bad though. It's just... I dunno, it's one battle and has different moments that I loved. Maybe I just felt like it was a little stagnant for a bit. Felt like "All Quiet on the Western Front" a little bit at points. Lots of people loved that. But I very much did not. This, on the other hand, DID have some action to break up the monotony and make it an overall pretty good story.
bookishbat's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
joe abercrombie will do it every time. the only author to write fight scenes i can enjoy reading.
a brilliant novella that perfectly ties his first trilogy + first novella together. i struggled a bit geographically, but that’s only because i’m a loser who wouldn’t go back to look at maps!
a brilliant novella that perfectly ties his first trilogy + first novella together. i struggled a bit geographically, but that’s only because i’m a loser who wouldn’t go back to look at maps!
conner_14's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
ficollantes's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
joejennings1990's review against another edition
5.0
No one write battle scenes quite like Joe Abercrombie. It's no surprise then that this book, an account of a battle for an inconsequential set of hills, is hands down my favourite Abercrombie book yet. It's been nearly 3 years since I last read this book, yet one chapter in particular, demonstrating rapidly switching perspectives in amongst the chaos of a melee, is one of the most memorable passages I've read in a long time. Whilst it is possible to read this book on its own, I highly recommend you read the first law trilogy and best served cold before hand. These books are excellent as well and serve to add extra depth to a truly memorable cast. If you enjoy fantasy then I honestly can't recommend this book enough.
znorgaard's review against another edition
5.0
This may be my favorite of the not-quite-a-trilogy one offs in the First Law World.
The characters are interesting and inherently flawed. A select few have good intentions that fail to give them the skills necessary to live up to their heroic potential. More, have twisted goals and may appear heroic in their pursuit of those goals.
The main focus of the book is on a single multi-day battle. You get snapshots of both large and small scale tactics. You witness the chaos inherent in commanding an army across a wide battlefield. As is typical of Abercrombie, you're reminded death comes for everyone and rarely in the way we expect.
The characters are interesting and inherently flawed. A select few have good intentions that fail to give them the skills necessary to live up to their heroic potential. More, have twisted goals and may appear heroic in their pursuit of those goals.
The main focus of the book is on a single multi-day battle. You get snapshots of both large and small scale tactics. You witness the chaos inherent in commanding an army across a wide battlefield. As is typical of Abercrombie, you're reminded death comes for everyone and rarely in the way we expect.
lzamlynny's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
2.5
revacholfinest's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0